What is going on?

The time for an update on our most recent adventures is long overdue...

God is good, and if you doubt this, open your eyes! The whole universe screams of His beauty and purpose! I cannot but look at a child (much less my own) without knowing of the purity and hope that God has bathed His world in. Truly, "in Him we live and move and have our being!" As my good friend once told me, we can stand in awe of the God who "invented the color green!" How many other beauties and mysteries are the offspring of His genius?

I continue to be an unfit (and yet grateful) recipient of God's goodness.

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God is bringing us to a place where real depth of relationship is beginning to happen.

We just began a weekly men's meeting. I was greatly encouraged by our first meeting. There seems to be a real desire for deep and encouraging brotherhood amongst the men in our group. We decided to read a book together, "Blue Like Jazz," by Donald Miller. I am looking forward with excitement to the next Tuesday evening meeting...

Many of the people in our group have expressed the sentiments that there is something happening in our little community. I know that I see them as people that I want to grow with, as people that I could spend decades with. It is a blessing that God has gathered these people together. I truly feel honored by their presence in my home...

We are truly at a place where a community exists, and is established, beginning to take on a life of its own...

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We are also coming up against the "church culture" thing. Our team just recently had the opportunity to chew through some issues related to the way church is expected to function versus the way God wants it to function...

...the pressure is to "produce results," we have to "get" people. This is not the picture the Bible gives us, however, of effectiveness in God's Kingdom. Our authority is in our relationship to the King. If I do not speak for Him, then my words lack His power. If I do not know Him, then I cannot speak for Him. The indwelling Spirit carries within His very "DNA" the seeds of the Church, therefore we do not have to plant a Church, but simpy live in obedience to Christ, and watch as the Church springs forth. The Church is God's plan for the redemption of the whole of creation, the Church is God's manifest presence on the earth; we don't make it happen, we allow Him to make it happen through us...

The practical side of this is that God is conveying to us simple, deep truths; He is good (1 John 1:5), He is full of love (1 John 4:7-8), He is more concerned with our relationship to Him than with our outward selves (John 15, Matthew 7:15-29), we don't have to pretend to be something we are not, and we don't need to force His hand, He will establish His Kingdom, our part is simply cooperation (Matthew 16:18).*

As disciples, our part is to seek personal knowlege of God, common life with other faithful members of God's house, service to the community around us, and to effectively train others in this same way of life. God's part is to bring these acts of faith to fruition, guiding and correcting us along the way.

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We are transitioning into looking for a new place to live. Tamy and I are planning on buying a house, we are currently looking, and would love your prayers toward where exactly we should be. We are currently right in the middle of everything, and I love being in the middle of the action. However, there are many other neighborhoods we could see ourselves in. Pray that God would place us right where He wants us all...

*Just to reassure everyone, just in case it sounds like we have given up all our efforts at Church planting...
...quite the opposite. It is in knowing Jesus' heart, and in cooperating with Him, that our efforts are guided effectively toward the successful birthing of a new community of disciples. We have not ceased to reach out to those around us, to do so would be to disobey.

Who else?

"Because I make my living as a university professor and philosopher I am frequently asked, in so many words, "Why do you follow Jesus Christ?" My answer is always the same: "Who else did you have in mind?" I am open, I am willing, and I always seek to know more. But so far I have found no one who remotely compares to Jesus Christ as a practical guide to how things are and should be in human life. He proves to be one who is in touch with reality in depth and who guides me evermore into a life that comes to terms with evil in all of its dimensions. He brings us into the path leading to an experiential solution for the problems of evil."

-Dallas Willard

Define Success

I have been given opportunity to reflect, as of late, upon what exactly defines "success" in a church. If the answer to this question is to be in any sense of the word "Christian," then of course this definition must originate in the person and work of Jesus.

How would Jesus define "success" in a Church?

I'd love to hear your feedback...

(don't worry, I'll post the "correct" answer later)

Your Mission... should you choose to accept it.

In what ways has your religious conviction informed your writing? And would you comment on the presence (or lack ) of religious content, specifically Christian, in recent children's literature (say the last fifteen years or so)?

I think it was Lewis who said something like: "The book cannot be what the writer is not." What you are will shape your book whether you want it to or not. I am Christian, so that conviction will pervade the book even when I make no conscious effort to teach or preach. Grace and hope will inform everything I write.

You're asking me to comment on fifteen years of 5000 or so books a year. Whew! We live in a Post-Christian society. Therefore, not many of those writers will be Christians or adherents of any of the traditional faiths. Self-consciously Christian (or Jewish or Muslim) writing will be sectarian and tend to propaganda and therefore have very little to say to persons outside that particular faith community. The challenge for those of us who care about our faith and about a hurting world is to tell stories which will carry the words of grace and hope in their bones and sinews and not wear them like fancy dress.

This is a quote from the author of Bridge to Terebinthia that I found a blazingly illuminating insight into the Mission of God. She critiques much of "christian" writing as having the outward trappings of Jesus, yet missing the deeper reality of who He is, and bemoans the dearth of writing that truly captures the redemptive story of the gospel, transmitting it into our culture as many beacons of hope and life.

Jesus does not seek people to place His name on their bumper, but to live His life wherever they go (so much so that it could be said that we are acting by His Spirit). This is the essence of God's plan, that we would enter wholeheartedly into His desire to redeem the whole of creation, so that we would be His "hands and feet" throughout our various spheres of influence.

My friend Justin called us "nomad's, carrying on our backs the center of the universe with us wherever we go." It is this exact sentiment (portrayed through an eloquent voice) that is God's plan for effecting real change in this world. That those who know Him, would go into every nook and cranny of the creation, and discover Him there!

A tribute to idealism

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."

I would add, if you have built your castle on the ground it wasn't worth building...

Of course I am married to a woman who said, "I'm young and I'm and idealist, one day I'll be old, and then I'll be old and I'll be an idealist."

If no one has ever called you an idealist, you had better check your convictions.

"Realists" don't bring homeless people into their houses...

"Realists" don't quit their careers to manage a coffee shop for Jesus...

or sell everything they own to finance their church...

or move to a foreign land to share God's love...

or face communist prisons, roman gladiators, swords, guns, flames, and wild beasts, with confident assurance...

"Realists..."

...don't change the world...


May you never find yourself to have so settled into "the way things are" that you would trade your "castle in the air" for one of no worth. May you never be cursed with realism that is the death of a vibrant life of trusing Jesus.

Twelve Ways to Humble Yourself

Twelve Ways to Humble Yourself

1. Routinely confess your sin to God. (Luke 18:9-14) All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God. However, too few of us have a routine practice of rigorous self-honesty examination. Weekly, even daily, review of our heart and behavior, coupled with confession to God, is an essential practice of humility.

2. Acknowledge your sin to others. (James 3:2, James 5:16) Humility before God is not complete unless there is also humility before man. A true test of our willingness to humble ourselves is being willing to share with others the weaknesses we confess to God. Wisdom, however, dictates that we do so with others that we trust.

3. Take wrong patiently. (1 Peter 3:8-17) This has been a difficult one for me. When something is unjust I want to react and rectify it. However, patiently responding to the unjust accusations and actions of others demonstrates our strength of godly character and provides an opportunity to put on humility.

4. Actively submit to authority…the good and the bad! (1 Peter 2:18) Our culture does not value submission; rather it promotes individualism. How purposely and actively do you work on submission to those whom God has placed as authorities in your life? Doing so is a good way to humble yourself.

5. Receive correction and feedback from others graciously. (Proverbs 10:17, 12:1) In the Phoenix area, a local East valley pastor was noted for graciously receiving any negative feedback or correction offered. He would simply say "thank you for caring enough to share that with me, I will pray about it and get back to you." Look for the kernel of truth in what people offer you, even if it comes from a dubious source. Always pray, "Lord, what are you trying to show me through this?"

6. Accept a lowly place. (Proverbs 25:6,7) If you find yourself wanting to sit at the head table, wanting others to recognize your contribution or become offended when others are honored or chosen, then pride is present. Purpose to support others being recognized, rather than you. Accept and look for the lowly place; it is the place of humility.

7. Purposely associate with people of lower state than you. (Luke 7:36-39) Jesus was derided by the Pharisees for socializing with the poor and those of lowly state. Our culture is very status conscious and people naturally want to socialize upward. Resist the temptation of being partial to those with status or wealth.

8. Choose to serve others. (Philippians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 4:5, Matthew 23:11) When we serve others, we are serving God’s purposes in their lives. Doing so reduces our focus on ourselves and builds the Kingdom of God instead of the Kingdom of self. When serving another costs us nothing, we should question whether or not it is really servanthood.

9. Be quick to forgive. (Matthew 18: 21-35) Forgiveness is possibly one of the greatest acts of humility we can do. To forgive is to acknowledge a wrong that has been done us and also to further release our right of repayment for the wrong. Forgiveness is denial of self. Forgiveness is not insisting on our way and our justice.

10. Cultivate a grateful heart. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) The more we develop an attitude of gratitude for the gift of salvation and life He has given us, the more true our perspective of self. A grateful heart is a humble heart.

11. Purpose to speak well of others. (Ephesians 4:31-32) Saying negative things about others puts them "one down" and us "one up"…a form of pride. Speaking well of others edifies them and builds them up instead of us. Make sure, however, that what you say is not intended as flattery.

12. Treat pride as a condition that always necessitates embracing the cross. (Luke 9:23) It is our nature to be proud and it is God’s nature in us that brings humility. Committing to a lifestyle of daily dying to self and living through Him is the foundation for true humility.

Thank you (or maybe no thank you!) to the folks at Trinity Communion (I don't know them, just followed a link) for this handy, fun-filled guide to life! Check the title link...

The Philosopher

"If you could find a better way, Jesus would be the first one to tell you to take it. And if you don't believe that about him, you don't have faith in him, because what you're really saying is that he would encourage you to believe something that is false."

Dallas Willard

The Craftiness of Christ

Feast of Booths

I have been reading the book of Nehemiah lately...

...I came across this passage (check the title link)...

I began to think about what this would look like here and now...

What would it look like for you, your family, all of your neighbors, in fact, everyone in your entire city and surrounding area, to do this?

Take a week, and spend the entire week living in tents, reading the Bible, worshiping, praying, meditating; gathering with those around you...

I would love to see this happen!